[336] If a man who desires to accomplish a task
applies himself to the wrong endeavour,
and, so practising, does not attain it —
that indeed is the mark of ill fortune.
Uprooted would be his life, engulfed in woe:
if he should cast away the one thing, he would be like the losing throw (kalī);
and if he should cast away them all, he would be like a blind man,
through not seeing the even and the uneven.
What one would do, that one should say;
what one would not do, that one should not say:
the wise mark well
the one who speaks without acting.
Just as a lovely flower,
full of colour but without scent,
even so, well-spoken speech
is fruitless for one who does not act.
Just as a lovely flower,
full of colour and full of scent,
even so, well-spoken speech
is fruitful for one who acts well.
— The Elder Subhūta.
English translation from the Pali (Siam Raṭṭha edition) — under review, not for citation.